American Experience

Annie Oakley's Moving Picture

In 1894, the famous gunslinger, Annie Oakley came to Edison’s Black Maria studio in West Orange, New Jersey. Edison wanted to see if his kinetograph – a primitive version of a movie camera – was sensitive enough to capture the smoke from Oakley’s gun. The experiment was a success, as you can see in this short, silent film of “Little Sureshot” demonstrating her marksmanship.

Annie Oakley's Moving Picture

28s

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